6 Potential Packages for Artemi Panarin Amid NHL Trade Deadline Rumors
The New York Rangers are out of playoff contention and aren't planning to offer an extension to left winger and alternate captain Artemi Panarin. Panarin, whose $11.64 million cap hit is the seventh highest in the league, is 34 and still producing at a nice clip, sitting at 56 points in 51 games. Per reports, he's looking for a longer-term contract.
Some key aspects of this deliberation: Panarin has a full no-move clause, and it's unlikely that he's going to waive it for just any team. Like any player in his position, he's going to be looking for an extension. In fact, there are a few deals in here that I think only get done if he gets that extension.
Cap math is also a huge factor—at nearly $12 million per year, Panarin's contract is a tough one for most teams to swallow. Some would need to move money out, some would need the Rangers to retain salary on Panarin, and frankly, some might need both.
When creating past trade package pieces this season, we hadn't really seen any big moves happen. Now we have, and we know roughly where the market is set—and honestly, it's nice to see teams getting legitimate value for big-name players. That's not always how the trade market looks. Because it is this season, the general framework we're working with here is a first- and second-round pick, along with either a roster player or a couple of good prospects.
Without further ado, here are some potential trade packages the Rangers could receive for their top forward.
Carolina Hurricanes
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The Trade Offer: Artemi Panarin for a 2026 1st-round pick, a 2027 2nd-round pick, forward prospect Bradly Nadeau, and forward prospect Ryan Suzuki
Reasoning Why:
The Carolina Hurricanes are one of the few teams that wouldn't need to move money out to make this deal work. I'm not sure whether they'd have the space to extend him, but much like the Avalanche, they're strong enough contenders that he might be persuaded to waive without an extension in place and keep working on it through the rest of the season.
We've got the same pick framework as the other deals, and for the same reason. There's no money magic to be worked, so I took the tack of sending prospects back in this case, rather than a roster player. I'm a big fan of Bradly Nadeau, and while the Rangers' development system sometimes feels like where dreams go to die, I think Nadeau's playing style could have him on the roster sooner than later. He's speedy, he's really smart, and he's currently got 37 points in 29 AHL games. He's also got a great shot.
As far as Suzuki goes, I think he needs a change of scenery, and I think he's still got value to provide. If you don't agree with me, how do you feel about defenseman Dominik Badinka?
A caveat on the above deal: if the Hurricanes were to trade for Panarin with an extension in place, I'd say scrap Nadeau and Suzuki and replace them with defenseman Alexander Nikishin. Securing him for longer would require a higher value, and while moving Nikishin out wouldn't be ideal for the Hurricanes, it would be worth it in this case.
Chicago Blackhawks
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The Trade Offer: Artemi Panarin for a 2026 1st-round pick, a 2027 2nd-round pick, Nick Lardis, and forward prospect Nathan Behm
Reasoning Why:
This one feels a little pie-in-the-sky—who's to say Panarin will agree to waive his no-movement clause for a team he's already played for once, after all?—but the Blackhawks have been thrown out there in discussion a few times, so I thought we'd see if we could make it work. After all, they know what they're getting in Panarin, and they have the cap space to make it work. And adding a big name like Panarin might take the heat off of Connor Bedard, as almost nothing else could.
Much like with the Red Wings, since I threw in a player who is technically not a prospect anymore because he's logging actual game time for the NHL club and is just young enough to be considered a prospect—Nick Lardis, we'll get back to him in a moment—I didn't include one of Chicago's very top-tier prospects. Nathan Behm is, however, very good, and I think that with his high skill level, he has a clear NHL path ahead of him. He's one of the best forwards in the WHL right now, with 57 points in 41 games for the Kamloops Blazers.
As for Lardis, I've been a huge fan for a while now. His transition to professional hockey from the OHL was mostly smooth, and I think the more time he has in the NHL, the more we'll see his deception and control improve, and him not just be a distributor for teammates but a creator in his own right.
Colorado Avalanche
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The Trade Offer: Artemi Panarin for a 2027 1st-round pick, a 2027 2nd-round pick, and forward Artturi Lehkonen, with some salary retained
Reasoning Why:
The rich just get richer, huh? The way their season has gone so far, and with the brutal-looking upper body injury to captain Gabe Landeskog (appeared to be the ribs, which, ow), it makes sense for the Avalanche to go out and secure more scoring if they can. They want the Stanley Cup again, and they're going to go hard for it. Unfortunately for the Avalanche, it's going to be tough to make this one work with the cap math, but we'll do our best.
You'll find some combination of first and second round picks in all of these trade packages, because that feels most likely for a player of Panarin's character, especially with where the market is. Here it's 2027 because of what Colorado has available, and it works out nicely for the Rangers because they don't currently have a second-round pick in 2027.
As for including Artturi Lehkonen, he was considered for several reasons. He sends decent scoring back to the Rangers, with his 37 points in 48 games so far this season, without taking too much from the Avalanche. His cap hit is $4.5 million, which moves money out of the Avalanche's cap and makes that easier to achieve. He's also about to become an Olympian, headed to play for Finland in Milan in February.
Lehkonen is an important of the Avs, but adding Panarin to an already stacked team might be too tempting for the NHL's top team so far. On the flip side, the Rangers could potentially flop Lehkonen for more assets or keep him as a part of their retool.
Detroit Red Wings
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The Trade Offer: Artemi Panarin for a 2026 1st-round pick, a 2026 2nd-round pick, forward prospect Michael Brandsegg-Nygard, and defenseman Simon Edvinsson
Reasoning Why:
Technically, I went outside of my own framework here and included a roster player and a prospect, but to me, defenseman Simon Edvinsson is technically still young enough to count as a prospect, at least for the purposes of this exercise. Never mind that he's in his second full season with the Red Wings.
The important factors are that he's 22, still under team control (he's got one year left on his contract and will be an RFA), and has excellent defensive instincts and attention to detail. There's a lot of value there. Picks are the same, both in 2026, and there will definitely be some good players available in those spots.
Norwegian forward Michael Brandsegg-Nygard was someone I really liked in the 2024 NHL Draft, and he's currently in his first full season playing in North America. A quick rundown on Brandsegg-Nygard for those who are unfamiliar: he's a creative, skilled player with great skating who goes hard for the puck and isn't shy about seeking out contact. I can see the Rangers absolutely loving him.
No salary will need to be retained in this deal, as the Red Wings also have the cap space to make it work, and you know that general manager and executive vice president Steve Yzerman will be pushing for an extension to be in place as quickly as possible.
Los Angeles Kings
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The Trade Offer: Artemi Panarin for a 2026 1st-round pick, a 2026 2nd-round pick, and defenseman Brian Dumoulin, with some salary retained
Reasoning Why:
On the latest 32 Thoughts Podcast, Elliotte Friedman speculated about the Kings as a potential destination for Panarin, noting that the Kings will be losing captain Anze Kopitar when he retires at season's end. For this deal to work, the Rangers would likely need to retain a bit of salary, because otherwise Panarin's cap hit would swallow almost all of the Kings' current cap space. It's an intriguing idea.
Including defenseman Brian Dumoulin in this deal came about because the Kings saw it more as a roster player situation than a prospect one, and Dumoulin is a player Rangers head coach Mike Sullivan is very familiar with. He also brings the kind of stability the Rangers seem to value, and he moves money out for the Kings to help make the deal work without bringing in someone like Quinton Byfield, who I'm sure the Kings would prefer to keep.
Dumolin could then be flipped by the Rangers for more assets, much like Lehkonen was in our Avs package.
For full transparency, I did toy with a version of this deal that included prospects—specifically a combination of forward Liam Greentree, goaltender Carter George, and forward Kristian Epperson—but that didn't do anything to help the Kings' cap situation or make the deal work mathematically. I also considered a version where forward Adrian Kempe was the player going back to the Rangers rather than Dumoulin, but much like Byfield, Kempe feels like a player that the Kings would like to hang on to if possible.
Washington Capitals
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The Trade Offer: Artemi Panarin for a 2026 1st-round pick, a 2027 2nd-round pick, and forward Aliaksei Protas, with salary retained on Panarin
Reasoning Why:
Much like why we included the Kings, we're including the Washington Capitals because they've been mentioned as a possible destination for Panarin. This one feels less likely to me, mainly because of the cap situation—it seems like the route that would make this most possible is one where the Rangers retain salary, and the Capitals move some money out. And the player I propose being traded to the Rangers to make this happen is going to make a lot of Capitals fans hate me.
Forward Aliaksei Protas has garnered quite a few fans in his time in the NHL, including among his teammates. He's the power forward type, including size-wise, standing 6'6" and 250 pounds. Last season, he hit the 30-goal mark, and this season he's proving it wasn't a fluke, with 16 already. He's an attractive, cost-controlled option for the Rangers, with three more seasons after this one at $3.375 million. While at 25, he's not as young as some other options we've considered, he's still young enough.
Losing him wouldn't feel good for the Capitals, but somehow signing Panarin to an extension would make the sting go away pretty nicely. I'm not sure whether they could do it, but more unlikely things have happened. And while they're on the outside looking in right now, acquiring Panarin would go a long way toward a playoff push.
